Sunday, 29 September 2013

On a rarer daytime working 31452 leads the Railvac, some spoil wagons and 31190 from Ascot (6Z31 depart 07:50) back into Totton , with a reverse into the yard. A "Cosham Plant" excavator waits there to unload the spoil, while the drivers depart in their cars.

Saturday, 28 September 2013

Totton Yard is the current operational base for the Railvac, although the Network Rail sign at the gate still says Corrall's Coal Yard. There are also some stored Mark 1 & 2 coaches.

General view of Totton Yard which has seen something of a clear-out before use for Civil Engineering duties. The DBS owned coaches are FO 3255 (nearest), RB 1658, TSO 5386, TSO 5331, RB 1696 & FO 3368. Of these four may be sold, and two may be for repair (the RB's?). The coaches were in store from 2009 at Fawley, but it is understood that they were moved here on 12th July since there is road access.

Promoted by The Cotswold Line Promotion Group. Several "firsts" may have happened. First FGW HST on main line from Basingstoke? First HST to Bournemouth since 2002 (except the NMT)? First HST onto the Swanage Railway.

70018 was allocated to an intermodal for the first time in three months on Tuesday, 4M61 12:54 Maritime - Trafford Park, but failed at Shawford and rescued by 66564 working forward. 66564 + 70018 DIT 4O11 00:23 Basford Hall - Maritime on Wednesday, and not used again since.

Wednesday, 11 September 2013

Appleby East station building is maintained and in use as part of scrap yard complex, which rather litters the platform, running line and yard. No train has passed this way since the late 1980s, but the Eden Valley Railway has hopes of eventually running to here.

The only regular freight train on the main line through Fife is 6B32 15:52 Aberdeen Craiginches to LaFarge Oxwellmains (near Dunbar) cement empties. The northbound working operates via Stirling and Perth, thus avoiding the Forth and Tay Bridges, but the empties are permitted to cross them.

66622 runs though Aberdour, 20th August.

Running less frequently, and usually now a Colas 66 turn, is the Linkswood tanks, to supply aviation fuel to RAF Leuchars, scheduled for closure in 2014 as a fighter base. The outbound working is from Grangemouth, via Stirling, Perth & Dundee (run around) to Linkswood. Return is via Ladybank, Thornton, Dunfermline, Alloa & Stirling to Grangemouth. The surprise on 23rd August was that 56105 was on the turn - and this has repeated several times in the past two weeks.

At this point the train was slowing and stopped at Charlestown Jct, where events took a strange twist. The now little used points for the line to Longannet had a problem, and a decision was made to send the train once around the Fife Circle before a successful second attempt about an hour later.